Earnings pressure, external supervision, and corporate environmental protection investment: Comparison between heavy-polluting and non-heavy-polluting industries

Environmental protection investment (EPI) is an important part of promoting firms' green development and fostering sustainability. However, few studies have discussed the influencing factors of EPI at the micro-firm level. This study uses data on Chinese A-share listed companies covering 2008 to 2020 empirically examine how earnings pressure from the capital market affects EPI and investigate the moderating effect of external supervision intensity. The results show that firms with earnings pressure have a significantly negative impact on the EPI scale, which is observed mainly in the non-heavy-polluting samples. Moreover, increased external supervision intensity reduces the negative impact of earnings pressure on the EPI scale. This study further finds that the manipulation of EPI by managers under earnings pressure supplements discretionary expenses manipulation. In addition, firms that invest more in environmental protection experience reduced current profitability and market values. These findings provide novel insights into the impact of earnings pressure on corporate financial behavior and offer theoretical guidance and policy recommendations useful for both regulators and stakeholders.